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Annuities Outperform Withdrawal Strategies. The Research Is Clear.
- September 9, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Retirement Income
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A new study by economists Gaobo Pang and Mark Warshawsky stress-tests four major retirement income strategies — pure systematic withdrawals, full annuitization, and two forms of partial annuitization — across a wide range of wealth levels, health statuses, risk preferences, and market conditions. The verdict is unambiguous: partial annuitization outperforms in nearly every scenario tested. Pure withdrawal strategies preserve flexibility but expose retirees to longevity risk and sequence-of-returns risk that significantly threatens long-term income security. Full annuitization maximizes income stability but eliminates liquidity and bequest potential. Partial annuitization — converting a meaningful portion of savings into guaranteed lifetime income while keeping the remainder invested — captures the advantages of both without the primary drawbacks of either. The study also finds that SECURE 2.0 has removed a key tax disadvantage that previously penalized partial annuitization, and that delaying Social Security to age 70 improves outcomes across every income strategy tested. For the millions of Americans retiring without a pension, the research offers a clear framework for building retirement income that lasts.
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The 401(k) Is Not Delivering. Employers Are Starting to Admit It
- August 20, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Industry Trends
A new survey of 547 U.S. defined contribution plan sponsors from WTW finds that employers increasingly value their retirement plans — but many cannot demonstrate whether those plans are actually helping employees retire on time and with financial confidence. Only 60% of plan sponsors have even a working definition of retirement readiness, and the definitions they use vary widely: income replacement, retiring on time, and retirement confidence each cited by roughly 40% of sponsors. The result is what WTW calls a retirement outcomes gap — a structural mismatch between what employers expect their DC plans to deliver and what those plans were built to do. Three in four employers rank retirement savings as a core or top priority in their total rewards offering. Yet many plans are still governed, measured, and delivered for an era when accumulation was the goal. As the first generation to retire largely without pensions moves through the system, the pressure to prove plans work is mounting — and the solutions increasingly point toward guaranteed lifetime income as the missing link.
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Most Pre-Retirees Think About Income. Few Have a Plan for It
- August 14, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Retirement Income
New research from LIMRA’s Retirement Income Readiness Report finds that 88% of pre-retirees have thought about how they will generate income in retirement — yet 50% lack a meaningful or recently updated written plan, and only 40% work with a financial advisor. The result is a retirement confidence gap that savings alone will not close. The study, which surveyed 486 pre-retirees and 804 retirees aged 45 and older, finds that only 1 in 4 pre-retirees believe their protected lifetime income sources will cover their essential expenses in retirement. By contrast, 78% of pre-retirees who already have a pension or annuity report high retirement preparedness — compared to just 50% of those without either. Three-quarters of pre-retirees say they want to learn more about protected lifetime income options. The findings make a clear case: thinking about retirement income is not the same as planning for it, and the gap between the two is where retirement security is most at risk.
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Three in Four Workers Fear Retirement Will Be Less Secure Than Their Parents
- July 24, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Retirement Income
BlackRock’s 2026 Read on Retirement survey of 1,312 workplace savers finds that 76% believe their generation will have less certainty about retirement income than previous generations — a survey-series high, up from 67% in 2021. Nearly two-thirds worry about outliving their savings, and the data shows broad demand for guaranteed income, active management, and personalized guidance. At the same time, a Morningstar report finds that assets in target-date funds with embedded annuity options grew 70% year over year to $44 billion by the end of the first quarter of 2026 — still less than 1% of the $4.8 trillion target-date universe, but growing fast. Major firms including BlackRock, Vanguard, Fidelity, JPMorgan Asset Management, and TIAA are all expanding annuity-style products within 401(k) plans, responding to what retirement industry leaders describe as a pivotal shift from exploration to execution. A notable gap also emerged: women are 44% less likely than men to adopt guaranteed income solutions despite living longer and facing greater longevity risk.
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The Case Against Annuities Doesn’t Hold Up. Here’s the Research
- July 12, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Industry Trends
A working paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research finds that most people buy far fewer annuities than economic models suggest they should — and that the common objections used to explain this gap do not hold up under scrutiny. The research examines the standard arguments against annuities: fees, loss of liquidity, bequest motives, and the idea that Social Security already provides enough guaranteed income. It finds that while these objections sound reasonable in the abstract, they apply only to a narrow subset of retirees and require a level of financial sophistication to evaluate that most people do not have. The real barrier to annuity adoption, the paper concludes, is not that the products are unsuitable — it is that the systems and conversations through which people encounter them are poorly designed. Better institutional framing, smarter defaults, and clearer guidance at the point of decision are more likely to close the gap than any amount of financial education delivered in isolation.
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New Research Finds Annuities May Help Retirees Live Longer
- June 12, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Retirement Income
A new academic study examining nearly 600,000 Chilean retirees over nearly two decades finds that annuities substantially reduce mortality — increasing longevity by 2.55% at five years and 3.62% at ten years compared to retirees who chose phased withdrawals. The researchers, affiliated with universities in Chile, Indiana, and Dartmouth, conclude that annuities reduce mortality by shielding retirees from income volatility and investment-related stress. Survey evidence from the study also finds that annuitants invest more in their health and report lower disability rates. Financial advisors familiar with the research say the findings align with what they observe in practice: clients with guaranteed lifetime income sleep better, spend more on health, and experience less financial anxiety than those managing a portfolio through market cycles. The study adds a compelling dimension to the case for guaranteed income — one that goes beyond financial planning and into quality of life.
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Partial Annuitization Can Outperform the 4% Withdrawal Rule
- May 24, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Retirement Income
A new report from TIAA argues that partial annuitization — converting a portion of retirement savings into guaranteed lifetime income — can produce higher annual income in retirement than the 4% withdrawal rule alone. Using the example of a 67-year-old with $1 million in savings, TIAA illustrates that annuitizing one-third of assets while continuing to withdraw 4% from the remaining balance results in meaningfully more first-year income than applying the 4% rule to the full balance. The report also addresses the role annuities can play in helping retirees manage market volatility during the drawdown phase, providing a predictable income floor that is not affected by market swings. For individuals entering or already in retirement, the findings offer a practical framework for thinking about how to structure income rather than relying on withdrawals alone.
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Why Guaranteed Income Is Becoming the New Safe Haven
- April 30, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Retirement Income
Athene’s 2026 Retirement Outlook, developed in collaboration with leaders from Apollo and Vitera, examines the structural forces reshaping retirement security in the year ahead. The report identifies two primary risks for retirees and near-retirees: concentrated equity exposure in portfolios and the renewed threat of inflation. Against that backdrop, the outlook makes a case for guaranteed income solutions as a core allocation in retirement portfolios — one that can provide predictability that Treasuries, cash, and other traditional safe havens cannot offer in the same way. The report also highlights how annuity design has modernized, how benchmarks in the retirement system are shifting from fees to outcomes, and how the defined contribution space is beginning to integrate income-focused options as default structures. For clients approaching or already in retirement, the findings reflect a broader industry shift toward building retirement plans around income certainty rather than account balances alone.
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Fidelity Study Highlights Rising Importance of Guaranteed Income in Retirement Planning
- March 26, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Retirement Income
A new Fidelity study shows that more retirees and pre-retirees are prioritizing predictable income over portfolio growth as they approach retirement. Concerns about longevity, market volatility, and spending consistency are driving this shift. Individuals with access to stable income sources report higher confidence and are more comfortable maintaining consistent spending patterns. The findings reinforce a broader trend toward structuring retirement income rather than relying solely on withdrawals. As retirement horizons extend, aligning income with essential expenses may help reduce financial stress and improve long-term sustainability.
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Pension Buy-In Growth: Why Employers Are Transferring Risk
- January 16, 2026
- Posted by: August
- Category: Retirement Insights
“Pension risk transfer” can sound technical, but the core idea is simple: employers sometimes pay to move pension obligations off their balance sheet and into an insurer-backed structure. LIMRA reported that single-premium pension risk transfer buy-in sales surged in Q3 2025, reaching the highest quarterly total on record. For retirees and near-retirees, this matters because it reflects a broader theme in retirement planning: the value of predictable, contract-based income and the desire to reduce long-term financial uncertainty. This post explains what a pension buy-in is (in plain language), why employers do it, how it differs from other pension changes, and what retirement households can learn from the trend.
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